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On this episode of Our American Stories, Nicholas Biddle died broke, never received a pension, and was never officially recognized as a Union soldier because of his age and the color of his skin—but he was treated as a soldier by his company and was the first to shed blood in the Civil War, just days after the first shots were fired at Fort Sumter.

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On this episode of Our American Stories, Nicholas Biddle died broke, never received a pension, and was never officially recognized as a Union soldier because of his age and the color of his skin&mdash;but he was treated as a soldier by his company and was the first to shed blood in the Civil War, just days after the first shots were fired at Fort Sumter.
Support the show (<a href="https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate">https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate</a>)

Our American Stories tells stories that aren’t being told. Positive stories about generosity and courage, resilience and redemption, faith and love. Stories about the past and present. And stories about ordinary Americans who do extraordinary things each and every day. Stories from our listeners about their lives. And their history. In that pursuit, we hope we’ll be a place where listeners can refresh their spirit, and be inspired by our stories.

Our American Stories

Our American Stories tells stories that aren’t being told. Positive stories about generosity and courage, resilience and redemption, faith and love. Stories about the past and present. And stories about ordinary Americans who do extraordinary things each and every day. Stories from our listeners about their lives. And their history. In that pursuit, we hope we’ll be a place where listeners can refresh their spirit and be inspired by our stories.

Our American Stories tells stories that aren&rsquo;t being told. Positive stories about generosity and courage, resilience and redemption, faith and love. Stories about the past and present. And stories about ordinary Americans who do extraordinary things each and every day. Stories from our listeners about their lives. And their history. In that pursuit, we hope we&rsquo;ll be a place where listeners can refresh their spirit and be inspired by our stories.

The Forgotten Story of the Black Man Who Was the First to Shed Blood in the Civil War

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/39258bdd-49d5-4e0e-9f6d-b2ac0147f3d3/transcript

On this episode of Our American Stories, in the early 1900s, Harvard President Charles W. Eliot made a remarkable claim: with just 15 minutes of reading a day, a person could give himself the equivalent of a liberal education from a shelf of books only five feet long. Publisher P. F. Collier challenged him to prove it.

Our American Stories regular contributor John Elfner and historian Robert Johnston tell how Eliot's idea became the Harvard Classics, a 50-volume collection that brought Plato, Shakespeare, Saint Augustine, and other great writers into hundreds of thousands of American homes at a time when few Americans could attend college.

Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)

On this episode of Our American Stories, in the early 1900s, Harvard President Charles W. Eliot made a remarkable claim: with just 15 minutes of reading a day, a person could give himself the equivalent of a liberal education from a shelf of books only five feet long. Publisher P. F. Collier challenged him to prove it. Our American Stories regular contributor John Elfner and historian Robert Johnston tell how Eliot's idea became the Harvard Classics, a 50-volume collection that brought Plato, Shakespeare, Saint Augustine, and other great writers into hundreds of thousands of American homes at a time when few Americans could attend college.
Support the show (<a href="https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)">https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)</a>

The 5-Foot Bookshelf That Changed How America Thinks About Education

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/0313fd62-6dfd-40c2-9598-b4d6014b6462/transcript

On this episode of Our American Stories, on a summer walk through one of Antrim, New Hampshire's old public cemeteries, Bill Bryk begins reading the stones. A Revolutionary War militiaman rests near a Civil War cavalryman. Veterans of two world wars lie beneath familiar family names. Some markers tell long stories. Others offer only a few words, including one man's simple epitaph: “an honest man.”

Bill, who helps care for Antrim's four public cemeteries, reflects on the lives gathered there and the small ways a town continues to remember them. A name cut into stone, a flag placed beside a veteran, a relative stopping by years later. The dead may be gone, but in places like these, their stories have not disappeared.

Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)

On this episode of Our American Stories, on a summer walk through one of Antrim, New Hampshire's old public cemeteries, Bill Bryk begins reading the stones. A Revolutionary War militiaman rests near a Civil War cavalryman. Veterans of two world wars lie beneath familiar family names. Some markers tell long stories. Others offer only a few words, including one man's simple epitaph: &ldquo;an honest man.&rdquo; Bill, who helps care for Antrim's four public cemeteries, reflects on the lives gathered there and the small ways a town continues to remember them. A name cut into stone, a flag placed beside a veteran, a relative stopping by years later. The dead may be gone, but in places like these, their stories have not disappeared.
Support the show (<a href="https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)">https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)</a>

A Cemetery Is a History Book Written in Stone

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/f8291e05-7a5d-4a1e-a37c-b4d6014b6463/transcript

On this episode of Our American Stories, in February 1943, American soldiers met the German Army at Kasserine Pass in North Africa and discovered just how unprepared they were for the war ahead. Units became separated, communications failed, intelligence broke down, and inexperienced commanders struggled to respond as German forces tore through American positions. The defeat was humiliating, costly, and impossible to ignore.

The late historian Stephen Ambrose shares how the defeat at Kasserine forced Dwight D. Eisenhower to make difficult changes as the Americans learned how to fight a very different kind of war.

Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)

On this episode of Our American Stories, in February 1943, American soldiers met the German Army at Kasserine Pass in North Africa and discovered just how unprepared they were for the war ahead. Units became separated, communications failed, intelligence broke down, and inexperienced commanders struggled to respond as German forces tore through American positions. The defeat was humiliating, costly, and impossible to ignore. The late historian Stephen Ambrose shares how the defeat at Kasserine forced Dwight D. Eisenhower to make difficult changes as the Americans learned how to fight a very different kind of war.
Support the show (<a href="https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)">https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)</a>

Kasserine Pass and the Harsh Reality of America’s First Defeat in WWII

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/b121ba24-2af3-47a9-a204-b4d6014b6462/transcript

The Forgotten Story of the Black Man Who Was the First to Shed Blood in the Civil War

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